551.2. 



III. 



The Constantinople Earthquake of July io, 1894. 



FROM time to time, but fortunately at long intervals, the country 

 round Constantinople has been shaken by disastrous earthquakes. 

 During the Christian era, the present city or its predecessor has been 

 seriously damaged not less than thirteen times. The last occasion 

 was on July io, 1894, an d the havoc then wrought must be fresh in 

 the memories of all who read this paper. 



H.I.M. the Sultan showed much interest in the investigation of 

 this earthquake, which was undertaken by Mr. D. Eginitis, the Director 

 of the Observatory of Athens. Official despatches were forwarded to 

 the latter, and a Government steamer placed at his disposal, enabling 

 him to visit rapidly the chief scenes of disaster. Another important 

 result of the Imperial interest is the recent formation of a geodynamic 

 section of the Meteorological Observatory at Constantinople. This 

 has been placed under the charge of Dr. G. Agamennone, who for 

 several years previously held a similar office at Rome. Delicate 

 instruments have been, or will shortly be, erected at Constantinople 

 with the object of founding there what is called in Italy a geodynamic 

 observatory of the first order. Dr. Agamennone is also collecting 

 statistics of the earthquakes felt in the islands and bordering countries 

 of the eastern Mediterranean, and the Bulletins (2) which he issues 

 every month are full of valuable records, many of which might other- 

 wise have been lost. 



Isoseismal Lines. — The central area disturbed by the last great 

 earthquake is shown on the accompanying map (Fig. 1), which is 

 reduced from that prepared by Mr. Eginitis (7). Of the three iso- 

 seismals (or lines of equal earthquake intensity) marked on it, the first 

 surrounds the area of greatest destruction, in which well-built houses 

 were thrown down. The second includes all places where badly-built 

 houses were overthrown or strongly-made walls were fissured ; the third 

 those in which buildings were in no way damaged, but loose objects were 

 displaced or overturned. These three isoseismals correspond approxi- 

 mately to intensities 9, 8, and 7 of the Rossi-Forel scale. The 

 fourth, which is not shown on the map, bounds the area over which 

 the shock was perceptible to ordinary observers. It extends as far as 

 Janina, Bucharest, Crete, Greece, Konya, and over a great part of 

 Asia Minor. Outside this line, Mr. Eginitis distinguishes a fifth zone, 



